stonecrandall Chapter 133 The Study and Inheritance of Alchemy
Chapter 133 The Study and Inheritance of Alchemy
Chapter 133 The Study and Inheritance of Alchemy
The morning sunlight streamed through the enormous floor-to-ceiling windows of the "Tranquil Abode," illuminating the spacious dining room. The air was filled with the aroma of fresh bread and coffee, mingled with the crisp fragrance of the magical plants from the garden. The Hawthorne family was enjoying a sumptuous breakfast prepared by Mrs. Perenel.
"Karen, are you ready?" Nico put down his elegant coffee cup, his silver beard trembling slightly with his hearty laugh. "Today is the first day of your summer alchemy course."
Karen swallowed the last bite of his jam-covered bread, his eyes sparkling with anticipation. "We can start anytime, Professor Nico." He naturally used the new form of address, which Nico had specifically requested the night before, hoping that their relationship would be closer to that of a traditional master and apprentice than the polite "Mr."
“Great!” Nico stood up. “David, Emily, Perenel will show you around the library and the valley. Lily, the bubble pods in the garden seem particularly active today. Maybe you’d like to see how they blow bubbles?” He winked at Lily.
"Really? I want to go!" Lily exclaimed excitedly.
"Of course it's true, my sweetheart." Mrs. Perenel smiled and took Lily's hand. "Let's go, let your brother and Nicole go to their magic workshop."
Karen followed Nico through a quiet corridor inside the mansion to a heavy oak door. The door was devoid of any ornate decorations, except for a simple transmutation circle pattern made of flowing mithril lines, slowly rotating and emanating a gentle magical aura. Karen had seen this entrance during her last visit at Easter.
Nico extended a finger and gently touched the center of the transmutation circle. The mithril lines instantly glowed blue, flowing along the crack in the door as if they had come alive. Then, with an almost inaudible click, the door slid open silently inward.
The scene behind the door, though Karen had seen it before, still shocked him every time he stepped inside.
The vast space was divided into different functional areas by an invisible force field. A huge, transparent dome-shaped skylight brought in ample natural light, which was even and bright. Most striking was the central area, where a massive operating platform made of some kind of transparent crystal floated in mid-air. Below the platform was a complex network of pipes made of mithril and an unknown alloy, shimmering with a faint energy glow. The platform's surface wasn't solid, but rather a surface of light and shadow flowing with complex runes and data. This was different from last time; when I was here before, the materials being studied here were mostly herbs.
Surrounding the central platform are several independent work islands. On one island, several mechanical arms made of adamantite and magical crystals are precisely processing materials. Above another island, several holographic projections float, displaying complex molecular structures and dynamic energy flow models. Karen can recognize some of these models as common potion ingredients, while others are completely unfamiliar.
"Welcome back, Karen." Nico's voice carried a hint of pride. "How does it feel? Doesn't it feel different from the last time I came? Every time I step into this place, I hope to ignite new sparks of wisdom."
Karen took a deep breath, feeling the vibrant magic in the air. What made him even more exhilarated was that here, there were no strings attached! He could freely wave his wand without worrying about warning letters from the Ministry of Magic.
"It feels so good to be able to cast spells freely again," Karen couldn't help but sigh softly, her fingertips unconsciously rubbing her wand.
Nico smiled understandingly: "The wings of knowledge exploration should not be bound. Come on, let's start from the basics, but not those dry entries in your textbook."
They didn't act immediately. Nico led Karen to a relatively quiet corner where there were several comfortable chairs and a small crystal ball that could project images. Nico waved his wand, and clear light and shadow appeared above the crystal ball.
"Alchemy, Karen," Nico's voice became calm and penetrating, "its core lies in 'understanding' and 'guidance'."
Understanding the essence of matter—its constituent particles, the energy it contains, and the laws governing its interaction with the environment and with magic. Guidance.
It involves using your will, your magic, and your knowledge to cause matter to transform along your desired path, achieving leaps in properties, forms, and even levels of existence. This is essentially the same as your expertise in incantations, but alchemy delves deeper into the roots of matter, pursuing fundamental and lasting change, rather than the immediate shaping of energy forms as incantations do.
Karen listened intently; Nico's explanation went straight to the heart of the matter, subtly echoing the essence of the magical flow he had seen through his "Eye of Truth."
“Your talent,” Nico looked at Karen approvingly, “the ‘Eye of Truth,’ which allows you to ‘see’ the flow of magic within and around matter. This is simply the perfect key to understanding the essence of alchemy! It allows you to visually ‘see’ the energy changes and structural reorganization of materials during transformation, instead of relying on experience and intuition to figure things out through trial and error, as most beginners do. This is why I value this talent of yours so much. It allows you to skip many tedious verification stages and directly reach the core.”
Karen nodded in deep agreement. It was this ability to "see" that allowed him to accurately grasp the magical channeling properties of the dragon skin and the frequency of the moonshine when making protective badges and utilizing moonshine at Hogwarts.
"Speaking of which," Nico changed the subject, the light shifting to reveal the research notes Cullen had sent him earlier regarding the dragonhide protective badge and the magic circulation of moonmoss, "your research at Hogwarts was outstanding, full of keen observation and creative problem-solving skills. Using low temperatures combined with the 'Isa' rune to extend the stability of the dragonhide magic channels was a brilliant idea! And the idea of observing and attempting to mimic the natural magic circulation formed by moonmoss, Bowtruckles, and unicorns to design a passive charging system is even more promising, after all, the earliest magical alchemy imitated nature!"
Karen felt a surge of pride upon receiving the legendary master's affirmation.
“However,” Nico’s tone trailed off, “this makes me think about something deeper. Your protective badges, whether the dragonhide version or the later moonskin-charged version, are essentially still ‘passive response’ and ‘fixed program’. When attacked, protection is triggered. When mana is depleted, it needs to be recharged or its core replaced. So, Karen, can we make magical items a little ‘smarter’?”
Karen was immediately intrigued: "'Intelligent'? You mean, like a living creature, able to sense its environment and adjust itself?"
"Exactly!" Nico's eyes gleamed with intelligence. "For example, could a protective device not only activate when attacked, but also sense approaching threats in advance and automatically adjust its protective strength and mode based on the threat's intensity and nature? Could it automatically enter a low-power state in a safe environment, or even absorb free magic energy in the environment for slow self-repair or recharging? Could it possess a certain degree of 'adaptability' and 'autonomy'?"
This idea immediately reminded Karen of her initial concept for an autonomous defense system. "To be honest, I had similar ideas before, even more ambitious ones. I also planned to give this item a certain degree of autonomy, to give it a certain intelligence. This would require a deeper understanding of the magical conductivity and energy storage and conversion mechanisms of matter itself, and it would also require a core that could 'perceive' and 'judge'?"
"Exactly!" Nico praised. "This is the higher pursuit of alchemy: endowing inanimate matter with 'life-like' intelligent responses. This involves more complex rune arrays, energy circuit designs, and even the theoretical application of soul fragments. Of course, this is a very dangerous and forbidden area, which we will not discuss for now. But a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Today, let us begin with the most basic operation, yet the one that best embodies the essence of alchemy—the transformation of the essence of matter."
Karen then followed Nico to a secluded work island. On the island platform were several items: a fist-sized, dark-colored iron ore, mottled with impurities; a small, uniform mithril ingot that shimmered with a soft silver light; and a small bottle containing viscous dragon blood that shimmered with a faint golden-red glow.
"The transformation of matter into its essence, understanding composition and the flow of energy—these are the cornerstones of alchemy." Nicole looked at Cullen. "Casto should have already had you do basic single-substance purification at Hogwarts, right? Like separating pure iron from iron ore?"
Karen nodded, her tone carrying a hint of confidence that she had completed the basic training: "Yes, Professor Nico. Professor Castor instructed me at the school. I can now reliably extract iron blocks with a purity of over 93% from similar ores."
"Excellent!" Nico praised. "A solid foundation is essential for climbing higher. Castor has laid an important foundation for you. But the mysteries of alchemy go far beyond separating impurities." His gaze swept over the mithril ingot and dragon blood. "The real challenge lies in understanding the interaction and synergy of energies between different substances, in guiding them to undergo deeper fusion and transformation according to your will, creating complexes with entirely new and specific properties. This is the crucial step in alchemy's transition from 'separation and purification' to 'creation and synthesis.'"
He picked up the mithril ingot: "Mithril, an extremely precious magical metal, is renowned for its excellent magical conductivity and near-perfect stability. It is as pure as solidified moonlight, but this stability also brings a certain 'inertia'—it's like an efficient but silent conduit through which magical energy flows, yet rarely resonates." Then, he pointed to the vial of dragon blood: "Dragon blood, on the other hand, is entirely different. It contains primal and powerful magical energy, with a wide range of uses, but this power is like a bound flame, violent and unpredictable; direct use often leads to devastating loss of control."
"Today," Nico's voice guided, clearly presenting the goal to Karen, "our goal is not to purify them, but to attempt to utilize the untamed, active power within dragon blood to 'awaken' and 'enhance' mithril's exceptional magical conductivity, without compromising its renowned stability. Ultimately, we hope to obtain a new type of 'active mithril' alloy. It should possess both mithril's efficient magical conductivity framework and the energy affinity and life-like activity bestowed by dragon blood, perhaps allowing us to create more sensitive and responsive magical artifact cores."
This goal invigorated Karen. This was no longer a repetitive operation involving a single substance, but rather involved the harmonization and synergistic transformation of the energies of two materials with drastically different, even conflicting, properties! The difficulty and depth far exceeded that of ore purification, which he was familiar with.
"Watch closely, Karen." Nico's voice became extremely focused. He still didn't use his wand, but extended his right hand, his palm hovering above the mithril ingot and the open bottle of dragon's blood.
Karen immediately focused her mind, and a silver light shone deep within her gray-blue eyes.
Nico's magical radiance shone once more, and this time, under Karen's "Eye of Truth," his magic clearly differentiated into two distinct forms:
The magic applied to mithril gently seeped into its robust energy structure. Karen clearly "saw" that Nico wasn't destroying it, but rather subtly "guiding" and "softening" it. Magic threads intertwined between the magical nodes within the mithril.
It cleverly establishes countless tiny, new energy channels, as if laying more sensitive nerve endings for this silent metal, allowing it to "awaken".
Meanwhile, the magic applied to the dragon's blood took on a different appearance. Nico skillfully stripped away the overly hot and destructive parts, leaving only the purest energy flow containing gentle active factors. This refined energy flow was restrained and shaped, eventually becoming a slender and stable golden-red stream. The primal ferocity was tamed, leaving only vibrant activity.
The most crucial moment has arrived! Nico guides the magic of mithril to slightly "rise," forming countless tiny energy "interfaces" on the surface of the mithril ingot, as if extending an invitation. At the same time, the magic that restrains the dragon blood energy precisely guides the well-organized, pure golden-red stream towards these newly opened "interfaces."
Karen held his breath, observing intently. The pure, active stream of dragon blood, as if finally finding its home, flowed smoothly into the "interface" opened by Nico's magic, along the tiny channels he had carefully laid inside the mithril!
This was not a crude mixture, but a sublime fusion of energy! The golden-red active energy flow met and intertwined with the silvery-white stable magic flow of mithril. A miraculous scene unfolded: the golden-red energy did not devour or destroy the silvery-white energy, but rather, like the perfect catalyst and activator, gently adhered to and entwined itself upon it. The originally solid and stable energy structure of mithril began to undergo subtle changes after fusing with this gentle activity—its magic flow path became more complex and agile, and the overall structure seemed to be endowed with "elasticity" and "vitality," with a warm golden-red glow beginning to emanate from its originally pure silvery-white color.
The entire process was silent, yet it caused a dramatic change in the properties of matter. A few minutes later, the magical glow beneath Nico's palm dissipated.
On the workbench, suspended above the crucible, was a metal ingot roughly the size of two fists. It still shimmered with the characteristic silvery luster of mithril, but its color was warmer and more subdued, and countless tiny golden-red specks seemed to flow and flicker slowly within it. In Karen's observation, its energy structure was more complex and efficient than pure mithril, brimming with vibrant activity and a keen affinity for external energy!
"This is 'guidance' and 'synergy.'" Nico's voice carried a hint of weariness, but more so the satisfaction of completing a masterpiece. "Understanding the 'language' of each substance, understanding their 'will' for energy interaction, and then using your will as a bridge to guide them to coexist harmoniously, creating entirely new possibilities beyond a single substance. This is closer to the essence of alchemical creation than simple separation and purification."
Karen stared at the active mithril, its surface shimmering with a golden-red glow, and the shock she felt far surpassed that of the previous basic purification process. Nico's manipulation, displayed with such exquisite skill and complexity, was simply art! It was a profound understanding and perfect mastery of the essence of energy and the laws governing the interaction of matter.
"Now, it's your turn, Karen." Nico pointed to another set of materials prepared on the workbench: an identical mithril ingot and a small vial of dragon's blood. "Objective: initial fusion, stable form, active factor fusion rate of at least 20%, with no obvious energy conflicts or signs of structural collapse. Remember, the key is 'harmony,' finding the frequency and method that makes the mithril willing to accept and the dragon's blood willing to integrate. I will guide you from the side."
Karen took a deep breath, feeling an unprecedented challenge. He drew his wand, focused his mind, and activated the "Eye of Truth" once more.
His eyes locked onto the mithril and dragon blood, and the solid, stable silver-white veins and the wildly leaping golden-red particles reappeared clearly. He cautiously extended his magic, attempting to mimic Nico's earlier actions.
He first tried to soften the mithril, establishing an energy interface. But the mithril's solid energy structure strongly repelled his magical attempts; he felt his magic crashing against an invisible wall. Nico's voice immediately rang out: "Relax, Karen. Mithril is not the enemy. Your magic is not meant to 'conquer' it, but to 'resonate' with it. Feel its stable frequency, let your magical fluctuations approach its—like a drop of water merging into a stream."
Karen worked hard to adjust, making his magic gentler and the frequency more stable. Gradually, the repulsion from the mithril lessened, and his magic, like a trickle, began to painstakingly seep in, attempting to establish tiny connections within its dense structure.
Next came dealing with the dragon blood. The moment his magic touched it, the violent magic surged forth, making him feel as if he were holding a red-hot iron, scorching and chaotic. He instinctively increased his magic output in an attempt to forcibly restrain it, which almost caused a small energy turbulence. Fortunately, Nico intervened in time, and a gentle stream of magic acted like a dam, stabilizing the situation that was about to spiral out of control.
"Don't fight it!" Nico said in a deep voice. "The vitality of dragon blood is like a galloping horse. Your job is to be the rider who guides its direction, not a wall that blocks it. Feel it, understand its flow, and use your magic to lay a track in front of it, letting it run up and guide itself, not suppress it."
Fine beads of sweat appeared on Karen's forehead. Simultaneously handling two completely different substances, sensing their distinct "frequency" and performing two entirely different magical operations, while maintaining intense mental concentration and precise magical flow—this was far more difficult than he had imagined. Karen was only able to achieve this thanks to his previous practice of multiple spellcasting and his own talent; otherwise, he probably wouldn't have been able to even get this far. His magical energy was being consumed at an alarming rate, and his mind was under immense pressure.
Time ticked by. On the workbench, a few weak energy interfaces finally managed to form on a small piece of mithril. Karen guided a relatively gentle stream of dragon blood energy, which he had smoothed out, and tremblingly poured it into one of the interfaces.
With a soft "sizzle," the mithril energy structure at the interface fluctuated violently. A flash of golden-red light appeared and then dimmed, leaving a tiny energy burn mark at the interface—fusion failed! Energy conflict! The stable structure of the mithril instantly repelled the wisp of dragon blood activity that had not been fully harmonized.
Karen's heart sank, but he didn't give up. He immediately withdrew his magic, closed his eyes to rest and recover, and then started again, adjusting the frequency and intensity of his magic based on his previous failure. This time, he focused more on the unique, stable frequency of the "Resonance" mithril, and more patiently "sorted out" the surging energy flow in the dragon blood, removing its violence and leaving only pure vitality.
Finally, after three attempts, a wisp of pure golden-red energy was successfully injected into a stable energy interface! Karen watched as that energy slowly seeped into the mithril, gently attaching itself to the stable silver-white energy stream. Although the fusion area was small and the efficiency was low, it did indeed combine stably! A small corner of that mithril began to emit an extremely faint, but undeniably present, golden-red active glow!
"It's a success!" Karen almost collapsed as he retrieved his wand, his voice filled with panting and immense joy. Although it was only a very small, initial fusion, far from achieving the goal, this first step was of great significance! He truly felt the difficulty and allure of "harmony" and "synergy," as well as the wondrous symbiosis of two opposing energies at the point of equilibrium.
"Excellent!" Nico's voice was filled with undisguised praise. "To achieve initial fusion of mithril and dragon blood—materials with such conflicting properties—on your first attempt at harmonizing and synergistically transforming the energy of different substances is truly remarkable! You've successfully heard part of their 'language' and established a preliminary bridge of communication! Remember this feeling of finding balance amidst conflict and building connections amidst differences! Remember the process of harmonizing your magical frequencies! Rest, recover your magic, and then we'll try again. Today's goal is to double the size of the fusion area."
Karen leaned back in her chair, panting heavily. Exhaustion washed over her like a tidal wave, but she was filled with an unprecedented sense of accomplishment and excitement at exploring profound new frontiers.